Police attributes the many crimes in the university to the open access to the university. The OC CID, Makerere Police Station, Jackson Amali says people from outside the university use the many openings to enter and exit at any time.

Amali says it is these routes that people who commit crimes mainly use, making it difficult to track them.

The commonly reported theft cases are theft of phones and laptops usually snatched from students to or from campus; from halls of residence especially for boys and also in reading areas like libraries.

“We get cases from both students and lecturers but the most common are from students who lose their property almost every day. The most common complaint from the lecturers is vandalized cars,” says Masigano Elifazi, in-charge of operations, Makerere University police.

Some of the most-affected routes are also poorly lit, although police and the university are trying to deal with this. Some roads in the university that had no lights have been lit and patrols by the University police at night to ensure that crimes are not committed.  

Police however accuses some students of negligence. “Students should stop negligence like those in halls that leave their doors open as they go for a shower because most of the crimes reported concern them directly,” Amali adds.

The allegation is confirmed by Ruth Nabakabya, whose phone and laptop were stolen from her room in Mary Stuart hall. “I had gone to shower when my phone and laptop were stolen from my room,” although she adds that she remembers closing her room.

Makerere police recorded 82 cases between July and August alone, but handles about 318 cases annually. Since this semester started, police says it has recovered 15 phones through tracking.